


He's the One

by lilolilyrae



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - The Winter Soldier, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Getting Back Together, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-07-28
Packaged: 2019-06-16 05:50:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15430365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilolilyrae/pseuds/lilolilyrae
Summary: Post Winter Soldier Bucky is living with the Avengers at Stark Tower. Just how much does he remember about the time before the war, and what are his feelings for Steve?





	1. Purchase

**Author's Note:**

> There are so many stories about Bucky finding out Steve's in love with him because he's drawing him, so this is kind of a backwards approach :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2018-07-25  
> Title bc I was listening to that song where the guy goes "She's the One" a lot...

 

Steve is pulled from his thoughts of which gloves Bucky would like best to cover up his arm in public when he hears his voice from the other side of the yard sale booth. He looks up to find Bucky waving him over. Steve smiles as he walks over to his friend.

“What’d you find, pal?” 

Bucky's smile, while still pale in comparison to how he looked before th war, feels almost blinding with how bright it is. It makes Steve's heart skip a beat.

“A camera. It develops the photographs immediately.”

“Yeah, it’s called a polaroid. I've heard they were actually already around- before... But I've never seen one then”

“Me, either. Looks fun though. Can we get it?” 

"Of course we can! You can get it yourself, if you like it, you know you have money now" 

Bucky gives a jerky nod and turns around abruptly to talk to the salesman. Steve's heart aches at the sight, but he's glad that Bucky as much as expresses the desire to get something for himself... It's progress,at least.

They might never be the way they've been before the war, but as long as Bucky is happy, Steve will try his best to be as well. They will be alright. 

 

Once they get back to the Tower, of course, Stark has his own opinions about Bucky's buy.

"I don't get why you think you need this _thing_ , Robocop! A polaroid of all things! Every StarkPhone has a cam a gillion times better than this- Capsicle, why didn't you talk him out of this??"

Steve groans internally. He wants to talk Stark out of this, knowing that while the man probably means well, telling Bucky that his purchase was no good is a bad idea in his current state.

Before he can reply, however, Stark is already talking again.

"Wait, is it the instant printing? Because I can do that, I can totally do that with your phone, wireless, and you'll still have a digital copy! I'll just-"

He turns around, still gesticulating and mumbling under his breath, walking to the direction of the elevators, presumably to get back to his lab.

As he passes Clint, he jumps down from the counter he had been perched on and hits Stark up the head with a box of cereal.

"You just don't know how to appreciate fine retro culture, Tony!" he rolls his eyes in the direction of Steve and Bucky while taking Stark's phone away from him and deleting whatever he's already been trying there.

"Don't worry" he then says to Bucky "I bet your camera will be lots of fun! Just don't try and take a pic of Tasha while she's making a funny face, I did that mistake once, and maaaan," he shakes his head, "believe me if I say you don't wanna repeat it!"

With that, he's gone, following Stark or going god knows where.

 

As Steve turns to Bucky, he's looking down at the camera in his head, a twisted look on his face. Noticing that Steve is watching him, he looks up and attempts a shaky smile.

“I just thought it was less- less _new_ than all the other things... And that I won’t be losing everything if I lose my phone because the pictures will be there right away. I know it's probably not rational... ”

Steve gently takes his hands in his, the camera cradled in-between.

"That's perfectly alright, Buck. Not everything has to be completely rational, and I don't think anyone besides Stark feels the need to have the newest technology of everything"

Bucky smiles at him, holding the camera a little firmer in his hands.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why am I starting new fics when I got 5 wips???  
> Anyways, hope you liked it!!!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2018-07-27

"Do you already have an idea of what you will be taking pictures of?" Steve asks later, as they're sitting on the couch in the living room of their shared floor of the tower.

Bucky shrugs, staring ahead seemingly emotionless. They aren't even watching TV, the bright --flackering-- lights disturbing him sometimes. 

"Just things I see. Things I like- love."

There's a pause before the last word, and it's said so quietly it's almost inaudible, but Steve's heart sings at the notion that Bucky might know what it means to love something, or someone again... 

 

 

The first thing Bucky takes a picture of is his room.

It's still pretty sparse, only his cleaning utensils for the metal arm on the nightstand- and now usually the camera, but that, of course, isn't seen in the picture-, and a rifle over the bed. Of course Steve knows that there are many more weapons hidden in there, but those aren't visible either.

There's nothing personal for Bucky in here... But he still likes it? Maybe loves it there, even?

"Because it's _mine_ " Bucky answers as Steve asks him about the picture.

Of course. 

The winter soldier hadn't been allowed anything of his own.

 

Over the course of the next weeks, Steve keeps seeing Bucky taking pictures sometimes. It's never of the flashy touristy sighs in the city, and most people don't even notice it when he takes a picture, as it's always from the background, from the shadows.

Stege notices, but only because he is already looking. 

With some motifs, the reasons Bucky took the pictures are more obvious, like the building they used to live in, the docks where Bucky worked at, and flowers in the grass or shiny decorations in a shop window probably just for the beauty of it.

Some, even Steve has to think about, like the ground next to the ferris wheel- then he remembers, that's where they decided to move in together. His heart flutters a little. He can't think of any other reason Bucky took that particular picture... Does it mean something then? That he still feels something for Steve? Maybe he just took the picture because the place stands for a big change in his life as it had been then.

 

One day, as Steve gets home from a mission with the other Avengers, he sees Bucky standing in front of the mirror in the hall.

He's holding the polaroid camera with shaky fingers, and after a few moments- maybe seconds, maybe minutes, he can't tell- he's taking the picture.

Then he's standing there like frozen, the developing pictures dropping to the ground. 

"Bucky?" Steve quietly announces his presence. The other doesn't move, so he slowly steps forward, picking up the picture from the floor and waving it in the air a little until it becomes fully visible. 

It's a good photograph, capturing not just Bucky's face and upper body, but a lot of emotions that Steve can't really decipher. 

"Bucky?" he asks again, gently, before placing his hand on Bucky's left upper arm.

"Steve" Bucky mumbles, "hey"

He sounds almost teary, in a way Steve hasn't heard since- since they were in the middle of the war.

He gathers Bucky into his arms, holding him close as Bucky starts to sob.

After a while, he stops shaking, wiping his face free of tears with the back of his hand but still leaning against Steve, so Steve doesn't let go of him either. 

"I was in therapy" Bucky mumbles.

"Yeah?" Steve said, trying not to show his surprise. He did know that Bucky accepted the help of a counselor after some time, but also that Bucky never told anyone when the sessions were or what they were about. 'So you won't treat me different after and make it worse' he'd once explained to Steve.

"I was telling her about the camera, and that I was taking pictures of things I l-love" he now continues. "And she asked me whether I had taken a picture of myself already, then."

Now Steve feels tears in his own eyes, and he holds Bucky even closer.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My babies <3
> 
> Hope you liked it!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I NEED A BETA READER!!! If you're interested leave a comment :)

Steve's in the flat alone late in the evening. 

Bucky's not home yet.

Steve knows he shouldn't worry- lately, Bucky has taken upon walking the streets of the city by himself, maybe people-watching, maybe just feeling his freedom, Steve doesn't know.

He doesn't know what to think of it in general, either.

It's nothing like what Bucky used to be- always seeking the spotlight, talking to everyone, taking at least Steve with him when going out and only wanting to be alone at times while in the confines of his own room.

No, it's nothing like he used to be. Then again, there are a lot of things about Steve himself that aren't like they used to be, either. They've both changed, he can't expect Bucky to be all the same, even if he does recover completely. He's still Bucky, though, in his heart, with how he cares about the little things, with the same facial expressions, albeit muted...

And he obviously knows how to defend himself.

Steve shouldn't worry.

 

He continues walking through the flat, after a while finding himself in the doorway to Buckys room.

He sees a box on the nightstand that hadn't been there before...

Steve knows he shouldn't intrude. But he's just so _curious_ \- and really, they used to live in each others pockets all the time, and while Bucky did sometimes get annoyed when Steve went through his things, it was never a real argument, and Bucky now did always tell him not to treat him different or like he was somehow fragile... So it's really not too bad, is it?

So Steve reasons with himself while stepping into the room.

The case- really just a cardboard box, maybe there used to be shoes in it- is open, and as Steve steps closer he sees that it is filled with photographs. 

A smile plays on his lips as he sits down on the bed and pulls the box into his lap.

Pulling the first picture out of the box, he first sees writing on the backside of the picture- a date, a few days prior.

Turning the picture around, he comes eye to eye with his own face.

Looking out of the window, deep in thought, obviously not noticing Bucky and his camera.

With shaky fingers, Steve places the picture back into the box.

 _It doesn't mean anything_ , he tells himself. _So maybe Bucky_ likes _him, of course he does- it doesn't mean anything._

He keeps looking through the photographs. 

Some, he recognises- pictures of buildings and other things Bucky took while they were walking together, and the one of Bucky himself, in the mirror.

Some are new to him completely, like the one of his face, one of Bucky's metal arm, one of the entire team on a movie night, one of- is that the back of Steve's head? One of him in his Captain America uniform... And there's another one of his face, there fast asleep...

_It doesn't have to mean anything._

All the pictures have writing on the back, and at first Steve thinks it's just dates, but then on the one of himself in uniform he reads ' _my Captain'_.

Now he's looking at both sides of all of the pictures.

Some are obvious- ' _my arm'_ , ' _ ~~the~~ my team_ ', ' _where we used to live_ '.

' _My room_ ' on the picture of his bedroom in the tower, and Steve is happy knowing that Bucky accepted the place as his own. That he is willing to stay.

 

Some surprise him.

On the picture of a yellow flower- and Steve remembers where Bucky took it, they had been walking through a park together- is written, in a fast, hasty scrawl: ' _The colour of his hair in the sun_ '.

On one of a blue stone in a shop window: ' _his eyes'._

And, on the one of himself while asleep, just one word: ' _love_ '.

With a gasp, Steve puts the box down.

 

Then he freezes completely as he suddenly notices that he isn't alone anymore. 

Bucky clears his throat behind him.

Steve feels his face get hot as he turns around.

"Buck" he breathes out.

“Steve. What are you doing? Those are- mine.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that these were supposed to be a secret.”

With that, Bucky's face turns stony, not showing any emotions at all. “Well, now you know,” he says while looking Steve directly in the eyes.

Steve gets up, still feeling shaky. He takes the few steps until they’re right in front of each other. Then he gently touches Bucky's cheek.

“Hey,” he whispers. “I didn’t realize.”

Bucky's eyebrow raises in question: “Didn’t realize what?”

Steve swallows against the lump in his throat. “That you still love me back.”

 

Bucky stares at hum in disbelief.

“Love you _back_?” he asks in a voice so quiet it's barely a whisper.

Steve nods, smiling a giant smile at him.

"I never stopped loving you"

"Then why did you never say anything? You- you stupid punk!"

"I didn't want to scare you off! Jerk." Steve doesn't know whether to laugh or to cry.

Bucky takes the camera from out of his bag. Then he turns so they’re both facing the it and right before hitting the button he kisses Steve- for the very first time in an entirely new century.

They both pull back giggling like they’re back in school, but neither of them cares because this is perfect.

Bucky grabs the photo, waving it in the air before setting it down an grabbing a pen. Steve can't suppress the urge to hug him as he sees that Bucky is drawing a heart on the back of the photograph.

‘I love you, too.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and Kudos make my day :)


End file.
